How to Introduce Joyned in Your Church: Start with the Youth Group

Rolling out a new platform in a church setting can feel like a big task. Where do you start? Who do you involve first? How do you make sure it actually helps, rather than just adding more work?

For many churches, the best place to introduce Joyned is within the youth group. Why? Because youth teams already need a safe and structured way to communicate—something that WhatsApp and emails can’t properly provide. By starting with youth, you can quickly see the benefits of Joyned in action while ensuring it meets safeguarding standards.

Why Start with the Youth Team?

Most churches have strict policies around youth communication. Youth leaders can’t just message young people directly on WhatsApp. Emails can be ineffective—young people rarely check them. That leaves a big gap in communication.

Joyned fills that gap.

With Joyned, youth leaders can safely connect with young people, keep parents in the loop, and make sure all communication is clear and organised. It also helps churches manage safeguarding policies effectively, reducing the risk of private, unmonitored conversations.

‍"If you're going to get a real taste of how it can work in the wild, youth is a safe place to do it. It covers safeguarding and compliance, but also meets a real need."

How to Run a Joyned Trial with the Youth Team

1. Start the conversation
   Before setting up Joyned, talk to the youth leaders. Do they struggle with communication? Would a structured messaging tool help them? Get their input early so they feel involved in the process.
2. Involve the safeguarding officer
   Since Joyned improves safeguarding, it’s crucial to bring in the safeguarding team from the start. Make sure they understand how it works and why it’s a good fit for youth ministry.
3. Set up a small trial group
   A trial doesn’t need to involve the entire youth ministry straight away. You could start with a core team of leaders and a few groups of young people. This allows you to test how Joyned works in real church life.
4. Include parents
   Joyned isn’t just useful for youth and leaders—it also gives parents a way to stay informed. Parents can be added to groups, helping them stay connected with what’s happening. This makes communication smoother for everyone.
5. Run the trial for at least a month
   A short trial gives you quick insights, but ideally, let it run for a few months so it becomes part of the rhythm of youth ministry. That way, you can see how well it integrates into existing processes.
6. Get feedback and refine the approach
   Once the trial is underway, ask the youth leaders, young people, and parents how it’s working. Are they using it? Is it making communication easier? What could be improved?

For more details see: https://www.joynedapp.com/blog/onboarding-youth-groups-to-joyned-a-step-by-step-guide

What Happens Next?

If the trial is successful, you can look at rolling out Joyned in other areas—maybe kids ministry, volunteer teams, or small groups. But starting with youth makes sense. It meets an immediate need and gives the church a real-world test case for how Joyned can transform communication.

‍"Youth leaders often don’t have a way to communicate safely with their groups. With Joyned, they can. That’s why youth groups see the benefits straight away."

By starting with youth, you’re not just testing a new tool—you’re solving a real problem in a way that benefits the entire church community.

Ready to Get Started?

If you're interested in running a Joyned trial for your youth team, we’d love to help. Get in touch to discuss the next steps!